Blitzed [Paperback]

Robert Swindells (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 23, 2007

George is fascinated by World War II—even evacuation and rationing has got to be more exciting than living in dreary old Witchfield! He is looking forward to his school trip to Eden Camp, a World War II museum, but he never could have imagined how authentic this visit to wartime Britain will be. A hand reaching out of the fake rubble, a slip in time, and George has to survive something much worse than boredom. The rubble is now real—he has slipped through time into 1940s London. Imagine being alive before your parents were even born!

 

 

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 8 Up - George, a typical teenager, picks on his sister, hangs out with friends, and terrorizes the old lady across the street by "creeping" across her backyard and destroying a fence. After fixing the fence and giving his friends a hard time for not helping, George becomes excited at the thought of doing a school project on World War II, a subject he loves. On a class field trip to Eden Camp, a museum dedicated to World War II, George reaches for a hand sticking out of fake rubble and ends up sliding through a time slip into 1940's London. He quickly realizes his precarious position, but survives by becoming a member of a gang of orphans hiding in the basement of a bombed out pub. Through his prior knowledge of the history he is actually living and the help of the gang's 14-year-old leader. George lives through air raids at night and spy hunting during the day. Eventually he returns to the present with a new insight into his neighbor's background. Christian Rodska does an excellent job of narrating the novel by British author Robert Swindells, giving each character a distinctive voice. Listeners will appreciate the author's use of short chapters, breaking the story down into scenes much like a play. The use of British slang may be slightly confusing at first for American audiences, but it doesn't interfere with understanding the story. Listeners are given a realistic look at survival in 1940s London and the hardships of living through war. A great addition to upper middle and high school as well as public library collections. - Lisa D. Williams, Chocowinity Middle School, NY
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to the Audio Cassette edition.

From the Inside Flap

Time slips back to the London Blitz in World War II

George is fascinated by World War II; bombers, Nazis, doodlebugs. But he discovers the reality is very different from how he had imagined it when a school trip to the war museum leads to a timeslip -- and George is in London at the time of the Blitz. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 12 and up
  
• Paperback: 176 pages
• Publisher: Transworld Publishers (January 23, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0552555894
• ISBN-13: 978-0552555890
• Product Dimensions: 5.1 x 0.4 x 7.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,371,239 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Robert Swindells left school at fifteen to work on a local newspaper. At seventeen, he joined the RAF for three years, then trained and worked as a teacher. Now a full-time writer, he is the author of a number of bestselling titles for the Random House children's list. In 1994 he won the Carnegie Medal for STONE COLD (Hamish Hamilton), a teenage novel about a serial killer.
RUBY TANYA won the Salford Children's Book Award 2005.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Courtesy of Teens Read Too, November 3, 2008

By 

TeensReadToo "Eat. Drink. Read. Be Merrier." (All Over the US & Canada) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Blitzed (Paperback)

World War II and the atrocities of the London bombings seem a lifetime away for most young people. In BLITZED, George is a young man who has the opportunity to truly understand the fear and chaos that war can bring.

While on a school trip to a WWII museum, George is transported back in time to learn more about the world that he is so fascinated with in the year 2002.

At first, George is excited and anxious to learn more about his city's history, but then he begins to see the realities of war. During his trip he meets other young people who touch his heart and teach him to appreciate the gifts that today's world has given him.

Food rations, danger, and fear were commonplace during World War II, and that is brought to light in this "ghosts of time past" tale. The characters are believable and it brings to the surface a wartime London that can be forgotten in the midst of other atrocities of the era.

Overall, it is a great story that truly makes the reader think about the difficult times that WWII brought, not only to Nazi Germany, but also to the world as a whole.

Reviewed by: LaLeesha Haynes